DoD News

News Article

Joint Forces Kill 15 Militants, Detain Seven in Afghanistan

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2009  Afghan and coalition forces killed 15 militants, wounded 12 others and detained one in the Arghandab district of Afghanistan’s Zabol province after their convoy came under attack today.

The patrol was en route to a local village to talk with elders about security issues when it was attacked from a compound by several armed militants with small-arms fire. The combined force returned fire, killing one militant. Afghan forces secured and searched the compound.

During searches of other compounds in the area, the combined forces came under small-arms fire from militants on a nearby hillside. The Afghan-led force returned fire with mortars and called for close-air support to suppress the threat.

During an overnight patrol in Paktia province’s Dzadran district to capture Haqqani terrorist group militants, Afghan and coalition forces detained one suspect.

Forces then located a campsite a short distance from the initial search location and detained five more suspected militants. Two of the suspects were concealing AK-47 assault rifles, but surrendered to forces without incident and were unharmed.